State Parks of Iowa Fund Grant

 

State Parks of Iowa Fund Grant

The State Parks of Iowa Fund announced that Friends of Shimek State Forest has been awarded a grant of $1,500. to support maintenance of the Wet Weather Trails in the 2025 year. Friends of Shimek has pledged $2,000 toward Wet Weather Trail maintenance in 2025. Shimek DNR staff will provide the equipment and labor to haul and spread the rock.

The Shimek State Forest Lick Creek Unit has two public equestrian campgrounds and over 25 miles of trails. The Shimek facilities contribute to the quality of life and recreational opportunities for our community. With both day riding and camping available, as well as rider usage from the adjoining private campground, the number of riders is now at 6,000 to 8,000 per year. This means the maintenance of the over 6 miles of Wet Weather Trails in excellent riding condition becomes ever more important. The Wet Weather Trails have been widened, with drainage ditching added, and surfaced with small chip gravel to allow use without damage to the trails under much wetter conditions than dirt trails. This also provides safer footing for equines than would muddy dirt trails. The dirt trails do not dry quickly in the woods and are easily damaged by horse hooves when wet, especially on the many hillsides in the Lick Creek Unit. However, regular maintenance with additional rock is critical to keep the Wet Weather Trails suitable for their purpose. The project is expected to be completed by summer of 2025.

Forester John Byrd commented: “The development of the Wet Weather Trail was years in the planning and was made possible with initial funding from the William M. and Donna J. Hoaglin Foundation, Inc. Its maintenance and usage during wet weather prevents the kind of damage that Shimek had to its trails (as shown in the first photo below) BEFORE there were Wet Weather Trails. The second photo shows how the Wet Weather Trails look when properly maintained –ready for use under most riding conditions. We appreciate the support of the State Parks of Iowa Fund as well as the Friends of Shimek in helping our DNR staff keep the Wet Weather Trails ready for use.”

The State Parks of Iowa Fund is supported by grants, private donations and book sales to help alleviate funding issues in our State Parks through grants to friend's groups. Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation administers the grants on their behalf.